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Sunday, November 24, 2013

Sony Xperia SP is going to get Kitat 4.4 update, 4 more devices awaiting

Earlier this month, Sony announced Kitkat rollout plans for Xperia Z series devices: Xperia Z, Xperia ZL, Xperia Tablet Z, Xperia Z Ultra and Xperia Z1. It was the first and elite batch of Sony's stable to get the treat. This time, we are seeing Xperia SP may see the Android 4.4 treatment soon. 

On visiting the Xperia SP's support page, we see Android 4.4 version is set for future release. That means company intends to release the update. Not only Xperia SP is the only device to get it, there are 4 more devices in the queue: Xperia ZR, Xperia T, Xperia TX and Xperia V. Software update with Android KitKat is under investigation for them. Although it is not confirmed that whether these devices will get the update ever published, but the strong possibilities hint towards the positive result.


Well, it is the time for Android KitKat rollout worldwide. We may see numerous devices getting updated as KitKat supports devices upto 512 MB. If your device hasn't got the update or the manufacturer hasn't announced yet, don't worry, you always have the option to install launcher, themes, wallpapers and Android 4.4 leaked apps. CyanogenMod is also working on Android 4.4's forking. Keep calm. 

Sony Support page

Time to develop Apps for Google Glass, Google releases Mirror API


After teasing from a long time, Google has finally made available the app development tool for Glass developers. This morning Google Developers page on Google+ shared that Mirror API is ready to be used. 

Mirror API is a smaller tool which can be used for deploying apps for Google's headset. As the website says, it is useful for those who want Platform Independence, Common Infrastructure and built in functionality. Official development kit GDK or Glass Development Kit is still in awaiting. The web based services that interact with Glass are called Glassware. These services will use the cloud based APIs and thus will not run on the Glass Hardware; Glass will connect to them only, rest of the work will be done over the web on servers. 


The basic difference between GDK and Mirror API is used for letting the apps communicate with the Google servers to send updates and notifications to user's Glass such as sharing, location update etc. While GDK is meant for developing apps that directly run on Glass hardware and rely on it. It is like the other SDKs. 

We are on the verge to have GDK installed and with the release of Mirror API to everyone, a new definition of application development is going to be set positioned. Go, have a hand on the new tool. 



Thursday, November 21, 2013

State of ART: A new Android RunTime


With the release of Android 4.4 KitKat, Google introduced a new Runtime environment. Named as ART, an acronym for Android RunTime, it is deployed to help Android perform better. With the consistent 5 year use of default runtime Dalvik, KitKat ships with both runtimes available to be used.

But hey, what’s Dalvik?


The word “Runtime Environment” is the software environment created by the Operating System when a software is it in its running state. Dalvik is no exception. It is a process Virtual Machine RTE (Run Time Environment) that Google uses to run apps in Android OS. It is the base layer of the Android Apps. On the top of it, the Android apps execute. Android apps are coded in Java, and that code is converted to a code which is handled by Dalvik.

By the way, how does it work?

Dalvik has a Just-In-Time (JIT) Compiler. The Just In Time code means that code which is not compiled already, but when required, it gets converted to the executable code. The best example is Javascript code. A Javascript code always stays as non-precompiled in the website directory, but when user clicks on some spot where it is called, the code gets converted to an executable state.

Similarly Dalvik works. Android apps are not the compiled code, they are in a simply packed form. After installation, it gets stored on the hard disk of the phone (or a tablet). When it is executed, Android combines all the uncompiled code together, complies it and converts the code in Dalvik Executable .dex format. Then this .dex file is executed by Dalvik.
It is always a good option for application environments, but what the problem is that the dalvik executable takes much execution time and also battery hogs and CPU loads. Although it is not that much as it sounds, but still in the world where a single cycle of CPU and response time matters, Dalvik is not matching the requirements.

So, here we’ve got ART 


As an alternative solution to Dalvik, Google came with a new runtime environment called as “ART” or Android RunTime. ART incorporates AOT (Ahead-Of-Time) compiler, rather than JIT compiler. Instead of compiling the code at the time of calling, this environment has a different policy. Once an app is downloaded, it unpacks and gets compiled. If the user opens the app, the app opens up faster than Dalvik. This is because in ART there’s no compilation process occurs, hence it saves the processing time. Although it takes more space on the disk, but it results in lesser CPU usage and battery drain.

Google has kept ART turned off by default. Users can always switch from Dalvik to ART from Settings > Developer Options > Select Runtime.

Is it really faster?

Developers, those who have tested apps on ART, have said apps to be working 50% faster than in Dalvik. The small apps don’t have a notable difference, but large apps such as Photoshop Touch accounted fast opening in ART mode. Currently ART is in the testing phase. Not all of the apps work in the new environment.

The reason that developers should switch to start using ART Dalvik over ART is that they need to write the same code, and it results in faster apps. There is less UI latency, faster response, lesser battery drain and CPU usage gets reduced. ART is the future of Android. Google has worked two years to develop it, and finally it has made its inside the OS. 

Oh yes, by the way, following video shows Dalvik v/s ART which we found on YouTube.

Thursday, November 14, 2013

Google India posts an ad showing reunion of two friends separated during partition


Are you busy? Take out some time from your busy schedule and watch the new advertisement of Google India. Entitled as "Google Search- Reunion", this video ad shows two friends that were separated during the partition of India and Pakistan. The granddaughter and grandson of these two pals helped old pals to reunite. 

This emotional video is an advertisement focused on Indian users, in order to attract them and make them know how Google can make things easy, whether they are big or small. 

Wednesday, November 13, 2013

Nexus 7 (2012 and 2013) and Nexus 10 getting KitKat update, Nexus 4 and mobile data Nexus 7 to join soon


Google has announced on Google+ and Twitter that the latest release of Android i.e. KitKat is going to be pushed today to Nexus 7, both 2012 and 2013 versions. Nexus 4 and cellular versions of Nexus 7 users will get the update soon, however the date is not announced. 

Android KitKat is the most polished version of Android which Google announced on the last day of this October. It has a new predictive dialer, SMS integrated Hangouts, improved Google Now and a lot of under the hood features. Unfortunately, as Google had already announced that only Nexus 5 will have the exclusivity of "Experience Launcher" and no other device will get this launcher. 



This update is not for everyone, it is just for Nexus owners. Have you seen the update notification on your Nexus? Are you running KitKat? Let us know in comments. 

CyanogenMod Installer app comes to Google Play, makes custom ROM installation easier

CyanogenMod is the third most installed operating system after Android and iOS when the talk comes to Mobile OS. Few weeks ago Steve Kondik announced that the group i.e. CyanogenMod has earned $7 million funding and has turned into a company that is named on the group itself: CyanogenMod Inc. and today we're going to see one more happy news; the awaited CyanogenMod Installer app has landed on Google Play. 

This app helps users to install CyanogenMod in a much easier way. You need to download a Windows client to pair it with your Android phone or tablet. It reduces the cumbersome process of manual flashing of the popular ROM. Currently there is Windows .exe only and the team says work is going on for OS X support. Here's a list of CyanogenMod Installer supported devices

Steve Kondik, the founder of CyanogenMod says, ""Our goal for the installer has always been to allow more users to experience the benefits of CyanogenMod, without the hassles of technical guides and concerns associated with the process."

CyanogenMod supports majority of devices such as Galaxy S4, S3, Note series, HTC One, Nexus etc. Once the installer has been released it will be much easy for the users to avoid the hectic process and enjoy a different taste of Android. 




Monday, November 11, 2013

Oppo is going to be shipping out limited edition N1 with CyanogenMod in December


Not happy with the stock Android? Touchwiz, Sense and Timescpe UI suck? Then man, its time to switch to CyanogenMod, the largest community developed Android's forked i.e. customized version. Is it about rooting? No, now you can get CyanogenMod without root. Oppo, a Chinese manufacturer has designed a phone that comes preinstalled with CyanogenMod.

N1 was introduced back in September. It comes with a 13 MP rear camera on a top panel that can be turned to make it front camera. Also it has a "O-Touch” back panel with which you can scroll, tap and take photos from the rear part of the screen. 

Oppo N1 is a premium phone with 5.9 inch full HD display. It has 2 GB RAM, quad core 1.7 GHz Snapdragon 600 processor, Adreno 320 GPU, 13 MP camera with dual LED flash and 16/32 GB onboard memory. It will cost around $570. Are you in mood to buy CyanogenMod installed phone ?

Oppo N1 quick specs
  • 5.9" 1080p display
  • 170.7 x 82.6 x 9 mm 
  • 213 gm
  • Quad core 1.7 GHz Snapdragon 600 processor
  • Adreno 320 GPU
  • 23 GB RAM
  • 13 MP camera with dual LED flash
  • 16/32 GB storage

Sunday, November 10, 2013

Moto X customizing service Moto Maker comes to Verizon


After providing to the rest of carriers, Motorola has decided to launch Moto Maker for the Verizon. The big Red has got its Moto X customizing service a late, but now it will not be an exclusive to AT&T. 

Here's the official Verizon link for Motomaker. Although the device has already gone "Out of Stock". 

Sunday, November 3, 2013

Here's how to obtain root access on Nexus 5

Nexus 5 is a great flagship device from Google. Ofcourse, being from Google's side, it runs on pure Android. Well it is only 3 days when Nexus 5 was announced, the root access has been achieved on it. Chainfire, the senior member of XDA Developers has given us this special treat.

There's a simple utility developed by Chainfire named CF-Auto-root. As stated by Chainfire himself
CF-Auto-Root can be thought of as “root for rooting beginners,” as well as those who want to stay as close to stock as possible while enjoying the sweet, root-enabled goods.
Root process is simple when using this tool. It supports all major platforms viz. Windows, OS X and Linux. To root your Nexus 5, download the zip file from the link below (XDA thread) and extract it, enter into fastboot by power off, then pressing Volume Up + Volume Down + Power. Then connect your device via USB and run following commands on your system.

For Windows:

Double-click the root-windows.bat file from the extracted CF-Auto-Root files.

For Mac:

Open Terminal, navigate to the directory where you extracted the CF-Auto-Root package, and enter the following commands one by one.

chmod +x root-mac.sh
./root-mac.sh

For Linux:

Open Terminal, navigate to the directory where you extracted the CF-Auto-Root package, and enter the following commands one by one.

chmod +x root-linux.sh
./root-linux.sh

Now follow the on screen instructions on your computer and device. Be happy and enjoy, your Nexus 5 has been rooted. Celebrate Diwali. 

Follow the thread on XDA developers

Saturday, November 2, 2013

Android tops Mobile OS market share with 81 percent


Android is still on the top. Not only in fans' hearts, but also in the market. A recent research from the ABI Research reports that Android dominates in Mobile OS share with 81%. 

This year in third quarter, Android managed to make a good reputation with the help of manufacturers like Sony, Samsung, Xiaomi etc. This is a great figure for the green robot at the time when KitKat has been just announced. Apple has fallen down to 14% while Windows Phone is trying to maintain it with 4% share. This seems a quite fair rep for Microsoft. Blackberry, after the release of BB 10 and Z30, is still struggling and has only 2% share. While the other OS count for only 0.3% (as Android is actually 80.6%). 

All of these reports show that Android is seriously and rapidly dominating over the whole Mobile OS market. Is it going to kick everyone else out soon?

Source: ABI Research
 

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